What Remains
by GeorgiaGirl1331
Summary: At alternate take on the end of season three, and where everyone goes from there.
1. Chapter 1

Elena curls into Damon's side, relishing in the fact that he's still here. That he's the _only_ one that can make her feel as alive as he some how does.

Elena thinks that she should fucking hate Damon, but she knows that with out a doubt she loves him more than she thought she ever could. And on top of loving him, she _needs_ him, as much as he needs her.

She knows that Damon loves her more than he thought he was capable of. He thought he was a cold heartless monster. That all that mattered was revenge on Stefan and getting Katherine back. _(And that was all true, until he got to know her.)_

She knows that Damon worries that she will question her choice, that she will regret it and go running for the hills. She also knows that everyone questions her choice, but for some reason it doesn't seem to bother her.

Elena knows that no matter what Damon will _never_ leave her side. Only if she asked him to. _(That would never happen.)_

As Damon holds her and tries to soothe her sobbing with loving words, at the same time he tries to hold his own tears back.

They each shed tears for those lost, those hurt. Collateral damage or not they meant something to them. _To her._

Elena brought out every bit of him that he thought he had buried so deep he could never find it even if he tried.

Damon told her that loving her has made him into who he's always wanted to be, but never had the faith he could be. He knows how much she needs to hear things like that. And he also wonders if one day she will wake up and blame him for all the things she should have never forgiven but inevitably did.

Afterall, he was good at skrewing things up. He was everyones go to bad guy. Except this time they all saw it wasn't his fault. Even Bonnie and those judgy ways of hers couldn't find a way to put this on him.

He wonders why it all had to end this way, but he can't dwell on that because he has to be strong for her.

They both silently thank God that they have each other.

"Will you come to the funeral with me tomorrow?"

"You know I will."

"Damon, I can't go back to that house. Not after this."

"You can stay as long as you want. I'll get your things tomorrow. Nothing past that has to be decided anytime soon." He has this uncanny ability to always know how to take care of her, what to say when she needs to hear something. How their connection runs this deep she doesn't know, but she is beyond grateful for it.

"What about Stefan?"

"Don't even think about him. He's a big boy."

"Damon."

"I'm not saying it in a _dick_ way. He still loves you, and he knows what you are going through. He will understand."

"I never wanted to come between the two of you like she has."

"Hey, listen to me." He tilts her chin up so their eyes meet. "You brought us together, and we are different now. I hate to break it to ya babe, but not even you could break our unbreakable brother bond now, even if he hates me at the moment." She can't help but smile at him. He was right, they were brothers, still willing to die for each other.

"I'm glad Damon, he's always needed you. He loves you just as much as you love him, even if you won't say it out loud."

"Enough about me and baby bro, lets get you to bed." She can see how tired even he as a vampire is. This whole war with Klaus wore them all out.

They take each others hand, make their way to the stairs and start to climb.

_1-They find white oak._

_2-They come up with a plan, and successfully take out one original._

_3-Rebekah takes Damon._

_4-Klaus bargains with Damon's life._

_5-Killing an original takes out the whole line of vampires they created._

_6-Damon and Elena go to see Jeremy._

_7-Rose tells them who turned her._

_8-Elena admits her feelings for Damon._

_9-They bring Jeremy home with them._

_10-The decade dance turns deadly._

_11-Elena tells Stefan the choice she makes._

_12-They kill another original._

They stop before climbing the last step and look at each other as if they knew what each other was thinking.

_13-Now they deal with the ramifications of everything. Together._

They climb into Damon's ridiculously huge bed and they get as close as they can and hold onto one another, as if nothing can touch them. Because when they wake up they know what damage they have to face.

"We will survive this Elena, we _always_ survive."

"I know."

"The worst is over. That I can promise you."

"The way it ended makes it so hard to enjoy the victory."

"One day we will. One day we will all be able to be happy without feeling guilty. Now get some sleep. Tomorrow will be long."

"I love you Damon."

"I know. I love you."


	2. Chapter 2

Elena wakes up and she looks over to Damon.

Her first thought is that he is so_ beautiful_, and right now all she wants to do is get lost in the ocean of his eyes. They remind her how much she is loved, adored by him. They tell her everything about him. But right now he knows what she needs is some time alone to process everything, so he pretends to sleep so she can make an easy escape. As always Damon is giving her what she needs with out hesitation.

She places a kiss of his forehead and pulls on his shirt. She has her shorts and tank top on, it's not cold, but she _needs_ to feel him, to smell him. Having that helps keep her calm. He can _always_ give her that.

This is one of the many things she loves about him, one of the _many_ differences between the Salvatore brothers.

Stefan could be overbearing sometimes, Damon knew when to walk away. Damon was impulsive, Stefan thought about every angle. Stefan loved with his whole heart, Damon loved with_ everything_ he was.

Once she gets to the kitchen she puts a pot of coffee on and looks out the window. The weather was ugly. It was rainy and dark, the weather reflected how they all felt.

"Sorry. I thought it was Damon down here." She turns to see Stefan leaning against the wall. He looks her over, taking in her attire. She notcies and quickly replies.

"Don't be sorry. It's your house."

"It's yours too."

"I'm glad you said that. Do you mind if I stay here awhile? If not it's fine. I just-" She starts to ramble and she's glad he knows her well enough to speak up so she doesn't keep going.

"Elena. Stop. You can stay here as long as you need. You don't need my permission."

"I know, but I know that this is hard for you. I don't want to make it any harder. I just can't go home."

"I know. I can't pretend I don't love you anymore. I know Damon loves you too, and you love him, right?" Stefan knew that she had feelings for Damon, he just didn't know they were _this_ deep. She doesn't blame him for having doubts, Damon still did too, she was sure of it. Sometimes he looked her her like he was waiting for her to run back to Stefan. Like as soon as he skrewed up she would leave without a second thought, the thing was no matter if he skrewed up or not she was here to stay. She may have had doubts too, but that was _before_. Before she knew what really being with Damon was like. He was consuming, and passionate, and everything she didn't know she needed until he gave it to her.

"Elena?" She sips her coffee and looks back to Stefan.

"Sorry, I zoned out for a second. Stefan I can't do this right now. Especially today."

"Right. That's actually why I came to talk to Damon." Thankfully he lets it go. Even if it's only for now. She knew this conversation was inevitable but it didn't stop her from dreading it.

"About the funeral?"

"The time."

"It's at nine. You can talk to Damon about the rest. He's awake."

"Okay."

"Stefan?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you remind him about getting some of my things? I just need to be alone for awhile."

"I'll tell him." He gives her an understanding nod.

"Thank you." She gives him a small smile. A part of her wants to hug him, cry, and tell him she loves him and she's so very sorry. Except she can't do that because it will give him false hope, that _maybe_ someday. That day would_ never_ come, she could _never_ leave Damon. Even after only a short amount of time she knows with him is where she _has_ to be. She wants Stefan to know she still loves him, just not the way she did before, and he should know that. Just not right now, the dust had to settle a bit more with the brothers. She doesn't want either of them to think she made a rash decision either.

She wonders what _he_ would think of all this. How he would feel. She smiles to herself, and the tears fall immediatly after.

So many casulties.

It started with her parents. Matt's mom leaving, Bonnie's Gram dying, Caroline's transition. Vicki, Mayor Lockwood, Rose, Anna, Isobel, John, and Bill. All dead.

They were all gone in such a short time.

And now _him_.

He was part of this dsyfunctional family that they had. He was integral, and now he was gone. They would mourn him, they would bury him, and they would move on. That was how they did things. It was how they had to do it, otherwise they would all end up in some sort of mental hospital.

How many more people would die because of who _they_ were, who _she_ was?

Witches, werewolves, vampires, and a doppleganger.

Klaus was gone, but who would come next? Who else wanted her blood? She could only think of one way to prevent that.

And it would mean _breaking_ Damon's dead heart.

But it meant that _they_ call could survive, that _Damon_ would survive.


End file.
